A Big Brother's Job
by Bunny1
Summary: Don's POV plus some missing stuff from the ep. Finders Keepers. One shot, complete.


Don looked up as he saw Charlie, maybe twenty feet away, being hollered at by two men. He rushed over so fast you'd've thought he teleported, and stepped immediately between his baby brother and the potential threat.

"Just what in the hell is going on here?" he demanded loudly, his stance tense, swaggering.

"Who are you?" one of the men demanded.

"Special Agent Don Eppes--- _his_ older brother." Don snapped.

And, the tone didn't just betray the anger that someone dared yell at _his_ little brother, but a bit of pride in the role.

"Yes, well, Agent, we are NSA." The smaller man said, holding up a badge. "We had your brother working on a case, and he belligerently and deliberately led us in the wrong direction so that you could find the very thing _we_ were looking for!"

Don flicked a guilty glance towards Charlie, who was looking at his shoes. For a minute, he looked twelve years old again, and Don _felt_ 17, and just wanted to kick these guys' asses for bullying his baby brother.

"I… I didn't know…" Charlie said quietly. "I…"

"It's all right; come on, Buddy." Don said, putting a gentle hand on the back of his neck and leading him towards his SUV.

Over Don's shoulder, he glared at the NSA men, as if daring them to follow. When he got into his seat, Charlie was still looking a little huddled, and the worry of P vs NP flickered in Don's mind.

"Chuck, it's okay." Don said.

"I didn't mean to…" he said again.

Don sighed. "I know, kiddo. I know…"

And, he patted Charlie's leg before driving off…

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Later, in the elevator, he noticed that Charlie still stayed close, and he purposely made sure that at all times he was in-between Charlie and the potential threat. Not that they'd physically harm him--- well, they'd _better_ not, or Don would kill them--- but, they still had no right to treat him this way. Act as if he were just some glorified calculator--- like _he_ did in the garage the day before, _shit, shit, shit_…

When they got back up to the office, they started in on him again, ranting about waste of taxpayer dollars and threatening him about clearance loss.

"That's it; I'm gone." He said, tossing up his hands.

"You're not going anywhere!" The older one yelled, and Don stepped between them once again. "You go right on ahead, Buddy." Don said, glaring at the men. "Get in there." He hissed, gesturing to his office.

"Back offa him, and I mean it." Don said in hushed tones so that no one else could hear them, because he was certain they were listening. "Now, what does the NSA want with this boat?"

Don was only met with schooled blank stares and silence. He roughly ran a hand through his hair, then went off enough that they finally got it through their fat, wooden heads that _he needed to know_. He went out the door to find Charlie, who was sitting on a bench outside.

"You okay?"

"I… I'm sorry, Don."

"Charlie---"

"No, I shouldn't have put your case on the back burner, especially for those jerks."

"Maybe you should be sorry." Don joked, but felt bad as soon as he saw the look on Charlie's face. "I'm kidding, Buddy. It's okay. I know they made you feel like you didn't have any choice…"

Charlie nodded.

"Look, kid… _I'm_ the one who should be sorry--- I should have listened to you yesterday."

Charlie looked up at him in watery surprise.

"Come on back inside."

"Are… _they_ back in there?"

And, Don's temper flared slightly again, at the very idea of those assholes making Charlie feel like he couldn't be where he very clearly was welcome and _belonged_. But, he hid it carefully, and helped Charlie off the bench.

"Don't you worry about those guys, just come on…" Don said gently, and led Charlie back inside, walking him all the way back to his boards. He gave him a reassuring nod and sat down, right in front, still making sure to put himself between Charlie and the interlopers. Because it was his job. Because it was just what big brothers do.


End file.
